http://www.wardsauto.com/dealers/auto-dealers-should-do-these-five-transformative-things
If only manufacturers would get on board with this. Right now they use the dealers as storage dumping grounds, to the point where you can't navigate through a new car lot. And they don't let warranty service take place further away than a quarter mile or so; the new car showroom and the warranty service center must be co-located.
And so on.
I'd love to see an aggressive dealer fight back on these levels. And the used-car sales thing should spur this; that's where the money is. There's a small indie repair shop in my neighborhood, Japanese repair, that also sells used cars. They also LEASE used cars WITH maintenance included.
Here’s what he says dealers need to do to ride that wave.
· Maintain sales and parts-service operations at separate locations. Showrooms belong in prominent, often high-rent spots to draw customers. But service departments should go elsewhere, including industrial parks, where real estate is less expensive.
· Employ drivers to drop off vehicles for test drives or pick them up for service.
· Lower inventory levels. “There’s no need to have high floor-plan costs.”
· Get into the vehicle-rental business. “That’s a springboard to subscription services,” he says, adding that many customers want leases shorter than today’s conventional 2- and 3-year terms.
· Enhance used-car sales, particularly with subscription services and shorter leases funneling a steady stream of vehicles into pre-owned vehicle lots. “There’s no reason a dealership’s new-car to used-car ratio shouldn’t be 1:1.”
Dealers by the nature of their business are short-term-oriented, Ferrara acknowledges. That’s why his long-term proposals don’t currently resonate with many auto retailers.
“They’ll say, ‘Business is good; we’ll wait and see,’” he tells WardsAuto. “But some dealers are working on this transition. And I’m out preaching.”
If only manufacturers would get on board with this. Right now they use the dealers as storage dumping grounds, to the point where you can't navigate through a new car lot. And they don't let warranty service take place further away than a quarter mile or so; the new car showroom and the warranty service center must be co-located.
And so on.
I'd love to see an aggressive dealer fight back on these levels. And the used-car sales thing should spur this; that's where the money is. There's a small indie repair shop in my neighborhood, Japanese repair, that also sells used cars. They also LEASE used cars WITH maintenance included.